Saeco Aroma Espresso Machine Mini-Review

While on vacation I had the opportunity to play a bit with a Saeco Aroma espresso machine, and have to say that I like it a lot. The specs are pretty good but they don’t convey the overall high quality of the device. It’s got a 15 bar pump, a 950 watt stainless steel boiler and the ability to brew from both ground and ESE Pods as a result of the special portafilter inserts that come with the machine.

The unit comes in either black or stainless steel, and is pretty heavy, offering you a bit of insight into its overall build quality. Not a lot of ABS plastic here; metal left and right. The reservoir is quite large, spanning the back of the unit, and coming in at 85-ounces. Plenty for days and days of espressos. The heat that comes off the boiler rises up to warm the cups that are stores on the top of the machine.

The unit has an on/off rocker switch, and a brew rocker switch down the left side, while it has the steam controls down the right side of the front panel. The steam wand swings to allow you to put the frothing pitcher under it, but the nozzle does not swivel up and out of the way, which makes you tip the frothing pitcher a bit to get it under the nozzle.

Espresso brew quality with the Saeco Aroma? Well, it all comes down to this, right? Well, I was impressed with the brew quality of the Saeco Aroma, and think that it makes a pretty respectable shot of espresso. It has a pressurized portafilter which means that it creates the back pressure without having to grind and tamp the espresso perfectly. With that said, I definitely saw a better shot of espresso coming out of the Saeco Aroma having given a nice light tamp to the espresso to set the ground coffee and make sure that a proper extraction occurs. We were using coffees from Gimme! Coffee in Ithaca NY, and the espressos were very tasty.

Net I am impressed with this classically designed little wonder, and have no issue recommending it.

The unit is available in two versions: